1949 Class Notes for 2021

Phone calls instead of letters seemed appropriate this pandemic year, which means we are mostly at home and answering our phones. A bonus for me was hearing your voices.

Sister Beth McCormick still enjoys apartment living and maintains her walks along the Hudson, although
distances are now shorter, and a cane assists her. Of concern to her are the virus and the political situation, but life is still good. For safety reasons, she has only attended Mass virtually. We agreed that a plus for this is more attention to the readings and lack of distractions during the service. Beth does experience the actual Holy Eucharist, brought to her home.

Another regular walker has been Mildred Carey Hubler. But one daily stroll led to disaster.
When her glasses fogged up because of her mask (we all can relate to that), she missed a step and
fell, breaking her shoulder and humerus. When I talked with her, she was back from rehab and amazingly taking one-armed care of herself. Milly is trustee for the Rotterman Trust, which offers to Catholic young women a Trinity scholarship of $100,000 for five years or $80,000 for four years. A recipient of the former amount could obtain a nursing degree plus a Masters. If anyone knows of a possible candidate, call Milly. Milly’s family does not live close but visits often.

It was so good to hear the voice of Barbara McMahon Sullivan after all these years. She lost her husband some time ago, but her son Patrick is living with her and brings joy. She and I have in common a son named Patrick. Mine lives 15 minutes from me. I again thanked her for the time she entertained Mary Welch Porter and me at her home in NY, when we Midwesterners could not get home for Thanksgiving.

Another voice from the past was that of Alice Traynor McGarey from her retirement facility in NC. I reminisced with her about my very first meals at Trinity, where we shared a table and I talked for the first time in my life with someone who had grown up in New York City where it was not possible to go trick-or-treating on Halloween. I doubt if she had ever talked to a Hoosier before either.

I reached Joan Monagan Clinton at the home where she had raised her nine children, seven of whom live nearby and provide help when needed. I only had seven and live NEAR the house where I raised them but not IN it. We both marveled at how we did what we did in those crowded years. I had enjoyed getting to know Joan better at our 70th Reunion, attended by only four of us, including Milly.

Mary Quinn Scolio sounded just the same as always. With three daughters in town, she is well looked after as she navigates with her walker. She plays bridge weekly. A son, formerly an electrical engineer, took a career turn, obtained a doctorate in psychology, and now teaches at Santa Clara University (a Jesuit institution) in San Jose, CA.

E-mail worked for Marita Rover Frank and Joan Dunn-Williams. Marita misses Bill, who passed away unexpectedly last March. She manages well in her over-55 townhouse community in Wilmington, DE with help from family and neighbors. Two grandchildren experienced virtual college graduations and are having a hard time finding jobs, but thankfully no one in the family has been infected with the virus. Joan notes that Covid-19 has a few perks – ZOOM for one (amen to that). This enables her to continue producing plays at Eckerd College, the latest being “The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time”, her fifth ZOOM play. These of course are just read, not acted, and a granddaughter and her husband, Eckard graduates, are taking part. It is the story of a 15 year-old who is autistic and a math savant. No grass grows under Joan’s feet, as I was well aware when trying to keep up with her at our 70th Reunion. What a great time we four had. A final thrill was when Pat McGuire sat at our table during the dinner for 55th and above classes. A truly remarkable lady.

Contentment reigns in my little house these days. Life slowed when I quit driving, but it grants me more time to prepare for the eternal phase of my life. Daily virtual Mass from Catholic TV in MA is comforting. And I love the sound of the Boston accents. Four of my seven children live very nearby and enrich my days with the latest technology, which adds both instruction and entertainment to my daily life. I hope that soon I will be able to resume hosting them all on holidays.

Best wishes to all,

Ellen Wagner Healey
ewhealey2@gmail.com